Menu

A lot of life is based on the decisions we make… what to do, what to eat, what to wear, who to go with, WHO to serve, when to do what we need to do.

I have yet to hear a telephone receptionist lash out on a caller right off the bat, though I am sure it has happened before. S/he comes to work and decides to be good at what she does – greeting, giving instructions, forwarding calls undergirded by the fact that she has to be nice and cheerful. This has to happen whether she’s had a bad day or not.

Everyday, we have an opportunity to choose. We can start it deciding that it would be a great day (whether it ends up being a good one or not but still learning from every moment) or get sidetracked into misery by every unfortunate mishap.

Tim Hansel made a comment in his book years ago that never left me ever since. He said, “Pain is inevitable but misery is optional.” Deep breath… read it again… “Pain is inevitable but misery is optional.”

Happiness is based on “happenings” but joy goes deeper than that. You can have joy in the midst of the toughest circumstances in life.

There will always be stuff to ruin our day. The question is not what happens to us but how we respond to what happens to us. That marks a leader and a disciple.